Maine Lobster Zone F Council Meeting Minutes
Lobster Zone F Council Meeting
The Log Cabin in Yarmouth
March 16, 2009 – 7:00 p.m.
Present: Tom Bennett, Don Ulrickson, Gregg Whitton, Jeff Putnam, Eric Anderson, David Johnson, Gary Hawkes, Glenn Rogers, Jeff Adams, Greg Griffin, Jodie Jordan, Craig Stewart, Bill Doane, Lyman Kennedy, Paul Fisher, Roger Allard, Herman Coombs, John Higgins, Don Perkins, Sarah Cotnoir and Sgt. Paul Joyce
Call to Order
Meeting called to order at 7:12 pm.
Approval of Minutes
Motion: (J. Putnam, D. Johnson second) To approve minutes.
Reports and Updates
LAC update by Jeff Putnam:
• Discussed the proposed Tier 2 Licensing Proposal. There are some ideas at this time being discussed.
• Jeff highlighted proposed ideas.
• Sarah stated that a tiered license system has been considered for years however there are always major hurdles concerning this issue.
• David Johnson questioned where Zone F was concerning our licenses attrition rate. Sarah stated that we were not yet at our target number.
• Licenses may go up 15% next year.
John Higgins from NMFS mentioned that trap limits were never mentioned during any whale issue. However, this issue is important to the Ocean Conservancy and the New England Aquarium. A member of the audience asked if any rope had been retrieved from a whale with our red marker on it, John Higgins answered, no to this question.
There was some discussion as to what could be fair in a tiered system. Sarah said that the state has looked at this issue with a C.P.A. There was also discussion that license fees could be reduced along with lower tiered licenses. A member from the audience warned about more regulations.
DMR update by Sarah Cotnoir:
• Officer Paul Joyce did an overview of the new enforcement rules. Most of this was concerned with compliance with the whale rules and protected resources.
• Officer Paul Joyce stated the owner operator law should pass and be in effect this fall. There was some discussion on this issue; as well as clarifications on this new rule. The enforcement of this is complaint based.
• Zone G is looking at extending Sundays.
• Zone C is looking into extending their apprentice program to help with limited entry.
• D.E.P. is offering financial assistance to those repowering to a Tier 2 compliant engine.
• Updated the council on the Lobster Promotional Council and the upcoming salt water fishing license.
• New fines and penalties were also updated.
• Zone council members cannot be elected if they have been convicted of a lobster violation.
Gear update by John Higgins:
• Clarified the definition of what groundline is and discussed other gear and exemption line issues.
• John Higgins phone number is 207-677-2316 if anyone wants to contact him.
• Warned that longer gangions could cause problems in the future if people were to push this issue.
Ocean Wind Energy
Don Perkins gave an overview of possible upcoming projects with wind energy. He began by stating who was involved and reasons why the State was interested in wind energy. He then outlined the pros and cons of developing these projects. He gave the council an idea of where the State was in their planning stages. He encouraged the council to pay attention to these projects. David Johnson questioned how the turbines would be anchored. Don discussed the options. Don said the Island Institute is working with people down in Penobscot Bay. Lyman asked about tidal current energy projects. Don said that there was not enough tidal energy in this area to make it feasible. Near shore areas produce ideal locations for wind turbines.
Old Business
No updates reported.
New Business
Sarah updated us on any new bills, some of which were killed. One proposed bill would allow someone to regain license due to past medical issues.
Motion: (J. Adams, T. Bennett second) Opposed to this bill. (Unanimous in favor)
Motion: (David, G. Hawkes second) Opposed to the inshore dragging/seining bill. (Unanimous in favor)
Open Discussion
Lyman Kennedy requested attention be drawn toward long stringers in the western edge of the bay. He suggested that an exemption be made only in the harbor. He also had an issue with the Zone G buffer zone – suggesting that the buffer zone ended up being unfair. There was some discussion on the 12 trap limit issue. Jeff Adams suggested a subcommittee be made to come up with any solutions to this issue and one was made, L.M.C.T. limited entry for area 1 permits.
Adjournment:
The next meeting will be on April 21, 2009 at 6:00 pm.
The meeting was adjourned at 9:38 pm.
